1. Field of the Invention
The present invention pertains to computer systems and hardware/software installation. More particularly, this invention relates to installing drivers without re-booting the computer system.
2. Background
Computer systems are increasingly becoming commonplace in homes and businesses throughout the world. A wide range of computer systems are commercially available, encompassing a wide range of features and system configuration options. Numerous devices can be either included in a computer system as originally configured or added on at a later time. Examples of such devices include network adapters, audio and/or video recording and playback devices, mass storage devices (including conventional hard disk drives, floppy disk drives, CD-ROM drives, etc.), scanners, printers, etc.
Adding additional devices to a computer system is often a time-consuming and difficult task from which many users shy away. Adding such additional devices typically requires execution of a setup or installation program which provides one or more device drivers to the system. The drivers indicate to the system how to communicate with the new device. Upon completion of the setup program, the system must be re-started or re-booted before the system is able to use the new driver(s) to communicate with the newly installed device. This setup process can become time consuming and frustrating for the user, particularly in situations where the process must be repeated and the system re-started multiple times. These problems are amplified by the long period of time required by many modem operating systems to boot. Thus, it would be beneficial to provide an improved way to add drivers to a computer system.
Thus, a need exists for improved driver installation in a computer system.